In Harm's Way
by JacquelineKennedy
Summary: A serial killer is on the loose at Mystic Falls. Will Damon and Elena be able to put their differences aside and work together to catch the murderer or will their grudge towards each other put them in harm's way? AU.


**Author`s Note**

I based this story on one of my favorite books ever. Instead of giving you guys the name of the book, I`ll let you guess (yes, I`m evil!). Every new chapter comes with a hint. You can tell me your guesses while reviewing :)

**Disclaimer**

I don`t own any of the characters but the ones I created.

**PROLOGUE**

The woman beneath Damon Salvatore was rubbing her thighs up and down the sides of his torso. She was more than ready for him. He licked her earlobe and nuzzled her silky neck, then moved down. His mouth found her breast and he ravished it with soft, wet kisses. She moaned as he sucked her hard nipple into his mouth. Her back arched, and she quivered. He began to descend down her body, devouring her with open-mouthed kisses. His teeth tugged at her lace panties. Suddenly, a sound stopped him. He strained to hear from under the covers.

"Oh baby, don`t stop" she groaned.

Her fingers twisted into his raven hair and pulled his face back into her.

"Wait. I think I heard something" he gently pushed her hands away and got out of his four posted bed. He pulled on jeans and checked the clock on the nightstand – 03:22 a.m.

He listened carefully and there it was again. Pounding. Someone was at the front door.

Damon passed in front of his brother`s room and got down the stairs of the boarding house. As he opened the door, he recognized the man standing in front of him as his old friend, Alaric Saltzman.

"I`m sorry to interrupt your… fun, Sherriff " Alaric said quite amused. "It`s an emergency".

"What`s going on, Rick?" he demanded as the crisp night air stung his bare skin. He hated to be interrupted and was not in a good mood.

"A group of boys found a dead body inside the Lockwood property". Alaric quickly explained. He was not very happy either.

"Are you sure it`s not a prank? Or maybe the boys were stoned and imagined it".

"Donavon went to check it out and told me to come get you. He said it was not pretty" Alaric frowned.

"Hang on a minute" Damon stepped back inside, letting the old door opened behind him. Sighting, he pulled on his boots and grabbed his shirt from the sofa, where it had been taken off him earlier in the evening.

"Damon, what is it?" a soft voice asked from the top of the stairs. He had forgotten about Andie. She wore one of his shirts.

"I`ve got to check something out. I might be a while, but you`re welcome to stay" he told her politely not really waiting her to stay.

"Is someone hurt?" she sounded more serious than concerned.

"I don`t know" Damon told her. He was annoyed that she was trying to fish for a bit of information. She was a reporter for the biggest Tv network on Mystic Falls and loved a good gossip.

"Can I come with you?" she asked lightly, trying to persuade him.

"No" Damon grabbed the keys to his Camaro and found Alaric already outside, waiting for him. "Let`s go".

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"It`s over there, sir!" Matt Donavon pointed toward an area down by the river. He was shaking and looked pale.

"Rookies…" Damon mumbled. He pointed his flashlight at the area but the stream of light wasn`t enough to see anything out of the ordinary. He and Alaric started walking through the tall grass.

The first thing Damon noticed was the smell… the permeating, nauseating, putrid smell. It belonged to a decomposed human body for sure. Then he noticed the blood. It was everywhere, from the grass to the trees. In the middle of the macabre scene lay a white body nested in the mud and leaves.

Damon approached the body slowly, as if not wanting to wake it. Then he saw it was a girl - a blond, beautiful young woman. Her throat was slashed and her skin ripped open.

"Get everybody here. NOW!".

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Elena Gilbert kicked off her muddy running shoes in the foyer before her boyfriend, Stefan, reminded her to do so. They met at college party. She found him charming and intriguing, and he liked her because she was caring and selfless. It wasn`t very long before they had moved in together in his huge apartment in Atlanta. Three months later Stefan got his dream job and everything changed. He was always at work and used Elena as a trophy girlfriend.

She made her way to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. The phone rang and she grabbed it before the fourth ring.

"Hello".

"Gilbert, it`s Elijah".

Elena ran her fingers through her long brown hair and stood up straight. "Hi, boss. What`s up?".

"I just received a call from the Mystic Falls field office. They have a murder victim, a young girl. You are from Mystic Falls, aren`t you?".

"Hmm… yes." She began pacing around the kitchen.

"Good, because I want eyes there. It`s the fourth dead body in a month". His voice sounded tired.

"It could be a serial killer. Do you want me to go check?".

"If you are up to it, yes".

Elena sighted and weighted her options. She never intended to go back to Mystic Falls so soon - too many memories, too much hurt. But how could she say no to a direct request from her boss?

"When do I leave?".

**Author`s Note 2.0**

I'm pretty stoked that you read this whole thing. Thank you! I commend you for that.

The next chapter will help clear some of this one up. So… stick with it!

Don't forget to review! Let`s just say that MAYBE I refresh my email every 10 seconds after I post a chapter because I love to hear what you guys are thinking :)

Oh, and if you want to send a critic, a correction or your best pick-up line, please send to me in a PM ;)


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